Recent Comments by hb74147

A former cyclist come clean

sic, noble efforts on your part, but at some point you're banging your head against a wall. For some reason some who don't want to see their favourite cheater criticized seem to think that opinions need to be supported by hard evidence like you're laying charges in a criminal trial. As far as I'm concerned you're allowed to form an opinion when mounting circumstantial evidence points to a ever more obvious conclusion.

NHL Sticks: Now With 50% More Curve!

Who's on the poor goalie's side? I think its more that they're trying to restore something like the former state of affairs where hockey scores didn't resemble soccer scores. Goalies and their equipment have steadily gotten better and better over the last 20 yrs or so. I'm for giving some sort of edge back to the guys trying to score. Even with the greater excitement and increase in scoring chances last year I don't think there was a significant increase in goals scored. Any time they want to widen the ice or give 4 on 4 hockey a trial would be fine with me too.

Oilers prospect, Robbie Schremp, is a hotdog.

myshtigo (way to beat me to the punch on the high sticking): I think is was only a year or two ago that the behind the net and in the top corner move that they showed in the clip was all over the sports show highlights. I think it was an OT winner in a playoff game or something too.

Oilers prospect, Robbie Schremp, is a hotdog.

The guy is good, but I don't think the lacrosse type moves belong in hockey. Isn't it high-sticking at some point if he has his stick in contact with the puck above shoulder level? I'm going to guess there's eventually going to be some sort of refinment of the rules to eliminate it (before, like you said, someone eliminates the hot dog).

You've heard of "shanking a kick," but how about "shanking a kicker?"

You've heard of "shanking a kick," but how about "shanking a kicker?"

rcade:"I'm glad Hand found it, but the snarky column in the Greeley paper is in bad taste. A stabbing's a pretty serious crime that could have resulted in life-threatening injuries, and he's treating it like a prank." I dunno..., isn't the absurdity of the guy's scheme the whole reason its even being reported in the news at all. I don't think it harms the victim really, just mocks the moron perp.

A former cyclist come clean

Quote from the "Lance Armstrong" link: "one of the possible side effects of prolonged steroid use is testicular cancer. It's impossible to prove, but if what the Andreus testified to under oath is true, than Lance Armstrong, role model and hero to so many cancer survivors, may very well have helped bring about his own cancer through his use of performance-enhancing drugs. Young athletes tempted to go down that road need to know if that's the case." St. Lance's sainthood status seems to be in more and more jeopardy all the time. Time for this guy to supercede Ben Johnson as the most notorious PED fraud of all time.

Jays' Gibbons, Lilly Get Into Argument.

Weedy, I'm not sure we actually disagree. I'm not referring to anyone that is going to the games these days, just those that used to and that we hoped would come back and fill up the Dome again since Uncle Ted opened up the pocketbook a bit. One of the reasons I enjoy the Jays far more that the Leafs is that the fans that are around are more real as fans (Sorry, you know what I mean though, the blind popularity). Whenever I visit the Batters Box site, I'm always a kind of proud that we have fans that are every bit as hardcore as any with far far deeper baseball roots (ahem, here too, of course). I guess I'm just referring to Toronto in general and the mood in the media while you are talking about the people who actually go to games. If all the new spending doesn't improve attendance I think I'd rather have a mediocre team with a true but modest fanbase than somehow sell our soul to woo back all of the fickle fans that don't come to the games any more.

Jays' Gibbons, Lilly Get Into Argument.

Weedy: we're not all a bunch of mealy mouthed lookatmes True, but serious sports fans make up a smaller core that is probably in the minority -- the other 30,000 that used to fill up the rest of the Dome are pretty accurately represented by the golf-clapping, arrive late & leave early, "please don't cheer so loud", attend only because apparently this is fashionable and world class enough, stereotype. Stuff like this seriously damages their fashion appeal.

Jays' Gibbons, Lilly Get Into Argument.

Jays' Gibbons, Lilly Get Into Argument.

Its kind of hard to give Gibbons the benefit of the doubt anymore -- he's done, the sooner the better. Its a perfect opportunity to promote Ernie Whitt, who probably should have had the job in the first place anyway. This might have blown over in a different market, another city might even embrace Gibbons and call him fiery and scrappy. But in a city that is always a little put off that they get virtually ignored by the US dominated sports media, I think they'll collectively resent the embarrassment he's bring down on them by getting them in the headlines for all the wrong reasons for the second time in a month. On a day where the sports media should be all over the Yankees/BoSox 5 game Fenway sweep, a defeat of near historic proportions, they are instead they're having fun at the expense of the otherwise usually ignored Blue Jays. Since we always worry about if and how we're seen through US eyes, this has got to be an offense far worse than losing or being irrelevant. A lot of the fickle fans that the Jays been trying to cajole back into the Dome probably just decided to continue staying away.

Red Sox gear up for pivotal stretch

re: Hinske -- thanks from the Jays for taking that $5mill salary off of our hands -- don't count on our losing the 25th (or so) man on the roster "diminishing our gunpowder" much. BTW, you just helped us either sign Vernon Wells to a contract extention next year or get another decent starter.

Steinbrenner Retreats From the Spotlight

its kinda sad -- the Yankees have gone from being a team driven by a brash, colourful, hot-headed personality to just being a bland professionally run corporate entity -- as much as I hated it/him, I miss having that having that whole story-line now -- I guess the big money involved means that bland professional/corporate ownership will more and more become the norm in pro-sports

Malkin jumping over to Pens?

Why We Hate A-Rod

Generally we all play a bit of a psychological trick on ourselves once we've picked out a whipping boy on one of our teams. If we decide we don't like someone we tend we look for confirmation of that opinion and we tend only to take notice when we see what we're looking for. When the guy plays well, we minimize it, explain it away or tell ourselves he owes it to us for all the other times he sucks. When he does screw up, we howl our disgust, say "I told you so!" and reaffirm our opinion of our favourite target's suckiness. ...unless of course the guy really sucks, in which case, uhhhh, he really does suck. Hard to make that case against A-Rod if you take a look at the numbers and the big picture. (for those in the TO area, yea, I listen to Mike Wilner's baseball show on the FAN590, he occasionally explains fan comments this way)

Tour de Fake?

From the Yahoo story: Arlene Landis, his mother, said Thursday that she wouldn't blame her son if he was taking medication to treat the pain in his injured hip, but "if it's something worse than that, then he doesn't deserve to win." "I didn't talk to him since that hit the fan, but I'm keeping things even keel until I know what the facts are," she told The Associated Press in a phone interview from her home in Farmersville, Pennsylvania. "I know that this is a temptation to every rider but I'm not going to jump to conclusions ... It disappoints me." Um, I could be wrong, but it sounds like even his own Mom is being pretty careful not to take sides here.

Is the current roster on USA Basketball the new Dream Team?

"To be fair, I think the team from the 1987 Canada Cup was a better squad. As well, I think the games from 1987 Canada Cup finals were far more entertaining and exciting than the 1972 Summit Series." But, the point is that the first one, the 72 edition is that special nostalgic team everyone remembers because of the timing, not the players. '87 WAS great, I saw some of the games right here in Hamilton and it is fondly remember by hockey fans, but the 72 team is seen as part of our common culture, kind of like other countries remember their great military victories. (...hey, weren't we talking about basketball?...)

Is the current roster on USA Basketball the new Dream Team?

"There will never be another "Dream Team". The NBA is too mixed now to have all of the dominant players be Americans" Yup, kidrayter2005. The Dream Team was as much about a point in time as it was about the players. Its sort of like hockey's first big international event. There will never be another 72 Team Canda or an event like that again no matter how hard they try and try to recreate it. I'm glad Canada actually managed to win the first big hockey event. It's allowed us to gloat ever since regardless of our sometimes only modest success at "our" sport since.

Fantasy American Football

not to divert or compete with the SpoFi league but I'm looking for: 1 more player for a H2H yahoo trader-style league - std yahoo scoring plus plateau yds bonuses - big wins earns H2H winner the right to force a trade on defeated team - Sat Aug 5 9pm ET draft and a few players for the entry level of a 3 Tier league (3rd year league, top players progress year to year up to higher league tiers) - yahoo H2H, slightly expanded rosters and 4 IDPs instead of team defense - Sat Aug 12 9pm ET draft players for both leagues are drawn from a very stable pool of players who have been playing vs one another in various leagues for several years send me an email with your Yahoo ID if interested at hb74147-AT-gmail-DOT-com

Mr. Congeniality, Shea Hillenbrand

I can see where the organization's coming from. Especially when you look down the bench and see Eric Hinske, a guy who's taken his demotion to part-time player with class, dignity, and a helluva lot of hard work to prove he can be better. Hillenbrand came nowhere close to that ideal when faced with a similar reduction in playing time. Amen, hopefully Hinske steps up and plays like he sometimes shows he can and fills in the gap. Out of frustration with his under-acheivement I was a bit of a Hinske hater until he showed a lot of class this year sitting way out on the end of Gibbons bench. Who knows, this could all turn out well, if not via Hinske maybe a hot bat from Syracuse can come up and help ignite things, we've seen very little non-pitchers from the system this year.

Mr. Congeniality, Shea Hillenbrand

Shea Hillenbrand... 1. He starts the season hot every year and is usually a below average hitter from June on. 2. He acts like a spoiled 8 year old when he's not in the starting lineup. 3. The Jays are in contention for the first time in years. Rios is on the DL and 3B-Glaus is laid up so they're very short on bats. Sounds like a perfect time for the backup 3B to take an 8 day All-Star Break for a family matter. What a team player and a pro. Most guys take only one or two days for the birth of a child and I think Chaucin pitched on his wedding day last year. 4. With his relationship with management strained already and his team frustrated and on the edge of dropping from contention, how exactly is writing "This Team is a Sinking Ship" on the clubhouse chalkboard funny!?!? 5. He can't take a well deserved dressing down for a stupid mistake and instead skips a critical game, goes on a tirade with the media and then goes home. 6. He's a shitty fielder. He sulks when he has to DH instead of miss and drop balls at 3B. 7. Gibbons, the guy he is making look stupid was his biggest ally and is the reason this first-half-only hitter got paid way to much to resign with the Jays. Sounds like addition by subtraction to me. I'd consider the Jays pretty lucky if they get anything for him by trade and don't end up having to eat this selfish slacker's contract.

CFL Pick 'Em, Week 2

Wright is Wrong for CFL.

I dunno -- but Ottawa aside, the league is on a real uptick, popularity-wise -- just hope its someone who can lay the groundwork to eventually get a couple more teams up and running in the East -- Ottawa again, Halifax or elsewhere -- and then leave it alone.

Lawyer said Grimsley was asked to wear wire in Bonds' probe

"Let them all do it and see who wins." That kind of sucks if you're a clean player. It really is the league & PA's fault for not whole-heartedly embracing all necessary testing -- how many players are plain old cheaters and how many would rather not, but cave b/c they feel they can't compete with the other cheaters otherwise? Don't know myself, but I'd like to think there's more of the latter.

Sorry Coach my ADD was acting up?

The Dominator may be back.

I think the Sabres would LOVE a chance to play against Hasek -- they're still pretty sore at him for leaving -- I think I heard something on the Buffalo sports radio station about a contest where you have to try and hit a cut-out Hasek in the groin.

Wie Makes Cut in South Korea

"in a sport where athleticism counts they are going to be handicapped" Remember the thread on this guy? Not much of an athlete or a physical specimen. Seems his ability to hit the ball has nothing to do with the typical differences that separate the genders.

The other half of number 714

How's a guy in pensacola catch wind of that article a couple of hours before "The Spec" hits the streets? My wife & I take turns delivering 150 editions of that paper each morning -- my taking an extended break reading that article probably had a few subscribers standing on the doorstep wondering where their paper was this morning.

Lackey, Kendall ejected as A's brawl past Angels

Hmmm... 6.08(b)(2)...., 6.08(b)(2)..., ah yes 6.08(b)(2). 6.08 The batter becomes a runner and is entitled to first base without liability to be put out (provided he advances to and touches first base) when... (b) He is touched by a pitched ball which he is not attempting to hit unless... (2) The batter makes no attempt to avoid being touched by the ball; If the ball is in the strike zone when it touches the batter, it shall be called a strike, whether or not the batter tries to avoid the ball. If the ball is outside the strike zone when it touches the batter, it shall be called a ball if he makes no attempt to avoid being touched.

Mirabelli traded back to Red Sox.

Players demand back wages

"Your problem is the other JQPs around you can afford to pay those amounts for tickets (more accurately, the companies they work for can and then write them off as expenses) and then you get priced out of the market."

I'm happy enough to let things go to the highest bidder as soon as cities/governments stop subsidizing and rather take their fair share of the cut. Ok maybe I won't be happy, but I'll at least quit bitching about it.

Players demand back wages

"Just so we're clear: you think that owners would charge lower prices for seats if players got paid less" Left alone players and owners are only going to keep on trying to maximize their revenue. The 3rd party that always gets left out of the equation is the local goverment along with their consituents the taxpayers. Pro sports franchises are subsidized by John Q Public via their facilities, capital contributions, tax breaks and use of local infrastructure. By way of reward owners and players put ticket prices out of the average man's means and if he wants to watch it on the tube he'll have to pay for some sort of specialty channel (and sometimes even the radio broadcast now).

I think that the next city that is getting strongarmed by a franchise that wants this or that or they'll move needs to make some demands for better access for Joe Average Fan before they subsidize them in any way. Crap they ought to extract a huge licencing fee from them while they're at it for permission to fleece public the way that they do.

I think if we all were really smart we'd dial down our love for all these millionaires a bit and move price of being a fan waaaaay down that supply and demand chart. Either that or we need to start a movement for sports socialism. Down with the bourgeoise owners and players! Power to the proletariat sports fan!

Players demand back wages

Players demand back wages

As much as I've come to dislike the players' unions for their contribution in putting ticket prices for major league level sports out of the reach of JQP, I guess this goes to show how a bunch of unrepresented jocks will fare without one. Sound just like how things used to go in the old days in baseball and hockey when the balance of power was still way over on the owner side.

Switch pitcher

I'm kind of disappointed he needs needs to declare to batters ahead of time which arm he's going to pitch with. It'd be much more interesting if the batter didn't know which side it was coming from for each pitch. Could be a right arm fastball or a lefty curve...

13-Year-Old Golfer Dakoda Dowd Opens Play

Sources: Favre to play '06 season for Packers

As much fun as it is to pile on and trash Farve, I agree he is getting a bad rap for last year.They had a guy off the street running the ball for them, a lousy O-Line and their only legit receiver was injured.He still had to try and move the ball up the field somehow, interceptions be damned.

arghh, I guess I'm ambivilent on Quinn, but Ferguson just seems like a little pedigreed silver spoon punk to me -- he gets my respect when he does something to earn it -- as much as I agree that Quinn's time was probably up it irks me that this little punk is the one booting a great hockey man out to the curb -- this jaded Leaf fan just became even more jaded

Bettman: Refs will make calls, or else

I'd give the referee-ing a solid B for the year, its definitely improved the game. One thing that still drives me nuts though is the 2 referee system -- esp when the ref way on the other side of the ice makes a weak call on a play that the ref in the immediate area correctly passed on -- they've either got to get rid of that 2nd ref or develop a system were 1 can wave off a weak call by the other

Maybe some Canadian Spofi'ers can help me with this one?

They don't do 5-pin anywhere else? -- thats news to me too -- I only bowl a few times per year, probably 50/50 5 vs 10 -- I think I actually prefer the plain old 5 pin alley I've been going to since I was a kid to all the 10 pin alleys which seem all seem to go for the disco lights and loud music Did a quick bit of googling & apparently 5 pin got started in Toronto at the turn of the last century as a simplified version of 10 for in order to speed up the game for a quick bit of lunch time recreation -- it briefly spread a bit to the US and a few spots in the British Commonwealth but never caught on. Hmmm, maybe the patriot inside of me wants me to be partial to 5-pin from now on. Here's a link, and another if you're inclined to read further.